Charlotte’s memories were tangled in chaos. A future built upon a distorted past could never be normal. It wouldn’t merely fail to progress in the desired direction—it would inevitably bring forth a great catastrophe.

Holy power and the power of dragons were diametrically opposed. If Charlotte used holy power to awaken Raymond’s past life, there was only one foreseeable future.

A rampage that would continue until Raymond’s soul cracked would surely spiral beyond himself and destroy the entire world.

Charlotte had come to Obliet because this place was connected to the temple’s true seal.

After reading Charlotte’s memories, it was revealed that the underground of the castle was linked to the outside of the holy grounds.

She had used secret passageways to plant seeds of holy power across the entire territory of Growen. All the strange phenomena occurring recently were entirely due to Charlotte’s holy power.

The holy power would draw a new seal upon Growen, unleashing a far greater force. At the center of that seal lay Raymond.

The screen was now filled only with a black ceiling—Raymond’s form had vanished completely, as if the jewel had been placed upon the altar.

‘I must stop this before it begins.’

But as long as Charlotte remained trapped within the jewel, stopping her was impossible. Even as she agonized, Charlotte continued her preparations for the ritual.

Anxiety made her breath short. Then, something small and warm touched her cheek.

Rudi, the shining squirrel she had named, placed its front paws on Yerpi’s cheek.

It was as if the King of Autumn was comforting her. But sometimes, trials could not be overcome by kindness alone. Yerpi lifted Rudi from her shoulder and held it face to face.

‘Thanks to Rudi, I was able to glimpse Charlotte’s inner world.’

Then perhaps attempting communication was possible too. At that moment, Rudi wriggled its body.

Deep in thought, Yerpi accidentally let the squirrel slip from her hands. The small creature darted nimbly before suddenly stopping. Its behavior seemed to beckon her forward, and Yerpi rose to her feet.

The spot where the squirrel halted was in front of a black wall. Every inner wall, except for the screen, was blocked by a barrier of darkness.

Yet Rudi, from within that invisible darkness, pulled forth Charlotte’s inner self. That meant…

‘This wall isn’t just simple darkness.’

The Saintess’s jewel chose its master.

By killing the Saintess, Charlotte had inherited the jewel, and the walls enclosing Yerpi were connected to Charlotte’s nerves—only they were invisible.

‘If Rudi can see it, then I can too.’

Raymond had said she possessed the ability to look deeply.

Then that meant she could also perceive what was hidden within this darkness. Even in moments of despair, she had to reach out toward a single ray of light.

Closing her eyes, she could suddenly see the darkness more clearly. Soon, beyond the image shown by Allosha’s jewel, a new vision unfolded before Yerpi’s eyes.

The light dragons Charlotte commanded brought flowers. Charlotte was in the midst of decorating the altar with them.

A gloomy hum echoed in her ears. This song did not belong to this world. It was from a more distant past—a sweet lullaby once sung to soothe a twinkling little star in a previous life.

Back in the orphanage, on nights when sleep wouldn’t come, she had closed her eyes to the sound of Yulha’s singing.

Back then, Yulha had been kind to her.

The same had been true in her first life. It meant that kindness had once existed within Charlotte’s soul as well.

With desperate longing, Yerpi called out to Charlotte, hoping—just this once—that she would hear her voice.

‘Charlotte, stop.’

When she called out in her heart, the hand arranging the flowers suddenly froze in midair.

But it was only for a moment. Perhaps the voice had disturbed her, for Charlotte abruptly snapped the flower in her hand and selected a new one. Her stubbornness made Yerpi’s insides burn.

This was only possible because Charlotte believed herself to be Elsia.

What could be done to change her heart? Raymond, lying on the altar where Charlotte placed the flowers, came into view.

Charlotte might welcome Yerpi’s death, but Raymond’s would be different.

Within the inner world Yerpi had glimpsed through the jewel, the death of Oblius had also existed.

‘She screamed.’

She had realized the consequences of her crime and wept bitterly. The one who experienced that scene could not possibly misunderstand—it was a cry born of twisted love.

And this time, the outcome would be even worse: not only the body, but the soul itself would shatter, making reunion forever impossible. Charlotte had to be made aware of this truth.

At the moment her resolve solidified, Yerpi’s backhand glowed pink. The seal of spring was shining.

‘This is…’

Just as the King of Autumn was by Yerpi’s side, so too were the Kings of Spring and Summer. The King of Spring had once appeared in Yerpi’s dreams.

The seal of spring flickered as if desiring something. Even without seeing it, Yerpi seemed to understand what the seal wanted.

Yerpi released a fragrance. Blending with the power of the King of Spring, it formed the shape of a new deer, glowing in gold and pink.

The deer carried within it the scene of destruction Yerpi had envisioned.

After gazing at Yerpi for a moment, the deer bearing the future turned and passed through the dark wall, emerging outside the jewel.

Startled, Charlotte stepped back as the deer burst forth from the jewel placed upon the altar.

“…What?”

The light dragons carrying flowers gathered around Charlotte in defense.

But the deer, carrying only visions of destruction, had no physical form—it passed through them all and was absorbed into Charlotte.

Charlotte’s pupils sharply contracted, then relaxed. She was now witnessing Raymond’s death.

The catastrophe that would unfold if she used holy power to awaken Raymond’s body.

Charlotte, having seen beyond everything, fell silent. The message was clear: no matter how much holy power she poured, Raymond would not regain his past life.

The only outcome would be ruin. The message had undoubtedly reached her. Then Yerpi’s voice echoed through Obliet.

‘Raymond’s soul will be destroyed. So please…’

But Yerpi’s desperate plea was met with cold rejection.

“Don’t lie to me. You fake.”

Charlotte glared at the jewel imprisoning Yerpi, her eyes trembling as if wounded.

“How dare you try to deceive me twice? You tried to steal the protagonist’s role I carefully created. If I had been just a little later, the ending would have been corrupted!”

A light dragon raged, expressing Charlotte’s fury. A powerful surge of holy power violently crashed into Obliet. Her fragmented, carelessly assembled memories had now transformed into an unshakable belief.

“So I will correct it myself.”

Yerpi sighed. Through the King of Autumn, she had sensed Charlotte’s true feelings—and they were not this.

Charlotte had clearly wavered upon seeing the ominous future. Yet she had not changed her choice.

If she couldn’t possess it, she would destroy it.

Charlotte had already resolved to stand here, accepting the ruin of everyone.

As holy power seized control of Obliet, Allosha’s jewel quivered and trembled. The holy power stored within the jewel began pouring toward the altar.

“Ugh…!”

As the jewel shook, the interior where Yerpi was trapped jolted violently, as if struck by an earthquake.

Yerpi, clutching the squirrel, tumbled across the floor before suddenly floating into the air. Some abnormality seemed to have occurred inside the jewel—perhaps due to the excessive holy power being released all at once.

The vision created by Yerpi’s ability was severed. Now, the only way to see the outside was through the screen within the jewel.

The noisy screen displayed the figures of Charlotte and Raymond.

Charlotte’s hair had turned completely white—she had released all her holy power at once.

She gazed down at Raymond with desperate eyes.

Raymond had, in the end, absorbed all the holy power into his body. Shortly after, his tightly shut brows furrowed.

At this first sign, Charlotte quickly leaned her face close to his.

“My love. Open your eyes. Your partner has come.”

Charlotte pleaded, as if she had crossed endless dimensions to reach his side. She looked utterly desperate.

Then, Raymond’s eyes opened. Charlotte trembled with joy at being the first thing he saw.

But contrary to her hope that he would now remember everything, Raymond remained silent.

“Raymond…!”

Suddenly, Raymond bolted upright and seized Charlotte by the neck, lifting her into the air.

Charlotte choked and flailed her legs in sudden agony. Watching from within the jewel, Yerpi sighed.

‘Raymond’s mind has been destroyed.’

She could feel it, even without direct communion—the fact that his mind had been corrupted by the holy power.